The first step to successful vegetable gardening is to choose a location in full sun. Most warm-season vegetable crops, such as tomatoes, corn, beans, peppers and peas, need heat and light to produce. Next, you need to improve the soil before planting. Almost all annual vegetables require excellent drainage and good, rich garden soil. To achieve this the easy way, plant a cover crop such as fava beans or white clover in the cool season before planting your vegetables. Just before planting, mow the cover crop and rototill it into the soil to improve its texture and nutrient value. Before planting vegetables, plow, rototill or hand-dig the soil, and add amendments such as compost or manure to improve the soil's structure. Once you've prepared the soil, avoid walking on it, which causes compaction. The soil should be loose and light in texture so roots can easily penetrate it. Cover the prepared garden plot with a layer of black-plastic sheeting (with perforations that permit water and oxygen to pass through) or landscape fabric, which will heat the soil and prevent weeds from growing. Black-plastic "mulch" has the added advantage of preserving the soil's moisture content so you don't have to water as often. It's easy to plant in a bed covered with black plastic: just poke through the plastic with your trowel. Follow the fold lines on the plastic to help keep rows straight. Don't create too large an opening when planting. The hole should be just large enough to fit the root ball through. If vegetable plants are in peat pots, use your trowel to make several shallow slices on each pot to help roots break through. You don't want to plant too deeply: set plants no deeper than the top of the pot. Water immediately after planting. You can apply a dilute solution of fertilizer if you wish -- no more than half-strength as indicated on the label. Water the plant directly through the hole you cut in the plastic. Avoid wetting the leaves of tomato plants to prevent fungus disease.
RESOURCES :
The Big Book of Kitchen Gardens: A Guide to Growing Vegetables and Herbs
Time-Life Books Inc.
Website: www.timelife.com
Kitchen Gardens: Beyond the Vegetable Patch
Book By Carole Turner
Out of Print
(Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, 1998)
ASIN: 1889538051
| 
)
)
